Dysart et al mayor Murray Fearrey said the township is progressing with plans to develop its 92-acre property on County Road 21 (CR21) but warned it could be 2028 before anything is built.

Council discussed the file again at a March 24 meeting, signing off on a $310,000 spend to hire two Torontobased consultants to serve as project managers. Biglieri Group and MTE Consulting submitted a joint bid to the township, one of three received, to oversee the first phase of development.

Fearrey said Biglieri will handle the planning files with MTE running point on engineering.

Up to now, the project has been led by County-based property developer Paul Wilson, who once owned the land. He sold it to realtor Andrew Hodgson in 2022 before the township bought it for $1.725 million in July 2023.

Wilson indicated last fall the project was too big for him to handle alone and recommended the township secure a project manager. While Fearrey was surprised by the cost, he felt Dysart had no choice but to proceed.

“We can’t do some of this stuff internally and we need to move forward to attract the kind of projects we need. We need a solid plan and to know exactly all the services and studies required before anything can be built,” Fearrey said.

The parcel has been split into 26 lots. Last fall, the township indicated one of those would be held for a new recreation centre, four for a potential long-term care facility and the rest for residential development. There’s also space for a public park and commercial units fronting CR21.

The mayor said the township remained committed to funding future technical assessments, such as traffic, environmental impact and hydrogeological studies and a stormwater management plan – documents Dysart would need to provide to the County to move ahead with an Official Plan amendment.

Money will also be needed to develop key infrastructure such as roads, sewers, hydro lines, water wells and internet. The price tag to service the lot has been pegged at $1.55 million, with Dysart council last year approving a plan to raise $3 million through community bonds. No program has yet been made public.

Despite the substantial cost, Fearrey feels the project is a good one for the township. Asked if he thought Dysart would recoup its outlay, the mayor believes they will.

“Doing all of this increases the price of the lots and basically guarantees development [will happen]. The lot prices will, in my view, double if the services are there,” Fearrey said. “It’s still a viable project for the township and one that’s badly needed.

“I want us to get this in a position with this council [to make sure] it goes ahead. I really don’t want to see this thing sidelined. We’re in tough economic times now and markets are not good, but they will return. Whether it’s a year or two years, I want us to be in a position to take advantage when they do rebound,” the mayor added.

The mayor says the land could one day house up to 100 housing units, with some of the lots slated for multi-residential.

“This is probably going to create 100 jobs when work begins on the construction side. That’s what we’re projecting. That’s a lot of money for our economy in Haliburton,” Fearrey said. “Then we’ll have the taxes coming in from what goes in there, the sewage rates. This will be a big win for the community. But we’ve got to get the foundation in place first.”

Negotiations with a “major” long-term care provider are still ongoing, Fearrey said. Last fall, it was confirmed Extendicare held an interest in the property. It was four years ago, February 2022, when the Ontario government announced it had approved a new 128-bed Extendicare facility had been approved for Haliburton County.

The for-profit long-term care provider has yet to formally commit to a location.

By Adam Frisk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

With the warmer temperatures, the melting snow, and residents trading their sleds for sap buckets, local officials and businesses are looking back on an “excellent” snowmobile season.

Despite battling fallen trees and some grueling equipment repairs, the Haliburton County Snowmobile Association (HCSA) said the trails saw high traffic, an increase in pass sales, and a boost to the local economy.

“Well, it started with trees down, and it ends up with trees down, but the verdict is it was an excellent season,” Neil Vanderstoop, HCSA president, told The Highlander.

The season got off to an uncommonly early start in mid-December, but the harsh winter temperatures put heavy strain on the association’s machinery mid-season.

“The challenges this year with grooming were keeping the equipment together when it got to those extreme temperatures,” Vanderstoop said. “Silly stuff like hydraulic lines and wheel bearings (failing).”

The president credited the association’s mechanic for working around the clock to keep things moving, often turning repairs around in hours rather than days.

The early start to the season translated to busier dining rooms. Over at Kosy Korner in Haliburton Village, the influx of early sledders was much-welcomed and was a vital part of the winter economy.

“We definitely have an influx in our clients, specifically snowmobilers, that come on weekends and even during the week,” manager Emily Keller said. “You get a slew of different varieties of ages, too.”

She noted that sledders came with healthy appetites, often skipping the lighter snacks for “heartier foods” like burgers, beer, and the “Eye-Opener” breakfast. The sledding community is known for being “good tippers” and highly loyal, Keller added.

However, while accessibility to the main strip in Haliburton was generally good, Keller highlighted one area for improvement – helping tourists find their way once they park their sleds at Head Lake Park. She said that while the regulars know the lay of the land, first-time visitors sometimes struggled finding their way to the shops and restaurants.

“A few of them had mentioned that signage at the parking area could be better… in the sense of ‘Main Street this way,’” Keller explained.

County of Haliburton manager of tourism, Angelica Ingram, said the early arrival of winter and consistently cold temperatures kept sledders on the trails throughout the area.

“Unlike some of the previous winters we have had recently, it stayed consistently cold for the majority of the winter, which helped,” she said. “Even with the early start sometimes we get thaws in the season that can be really tricky for snowmobilers and the club maintaining the trails. So we had the trails open most of the winter with less disruption, which was great.”

Vanderstoop said HCSA remained a regional leader in trail pass sales, with a two per cent increase over the previous year. He said most of the sales were seasonal passes, indicating a dedicated, recurring rider base, but the “pass-less” rider was a concern.

“The lack of passes was an issue this year,” the president said. “Some guys wait until after 4 p.m. to head out… that just hurts the sport.”

While the safety record was generally good, Vanderstoop pointed to speed as the root cause of complaints on the rail trail. Comparing sleds to ATVs, he explained that while dust keeps ATV speeds naturally lower, the “instant” power of a snowmobile requires more rider discipline.

The HCSA will hold its annual general meeting on May 24. The event will include the announcement of the Volunteer of the Year and a donation presentation to the Minden Urgent Care Clinic.

So, what’s next for Vanderstoop?

“I’m just sitting in the garage boiling down my maple syrup,” the president laughed, while offering one final piece of seasonal advice. “Don’t boil sap in the garage and try to wax your truck at the same time.”

By Adam Frisk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Highlands East council vows to “tweak” the municipality’s controversial Short-Term Rental (STR) bylaw after a heated public meeting that exposed the conflict between the township’s economic needs and its quiet lakeside character.

Elected officials heard from members of the public on March 24 who warned that the current STR licensing program is dragging down the economy, while others pleaded for protections from lakeside “party pits.”

Township business owners argued that current STR regulations are already causing a declining economy. Lindsay Watling, co-owner of the Wilberforce Service Centre, told council her business saw a 30 per cent decline in revenue from June to September 2025, a drop she attributes to a lack of local hospitality.

“We simply do not have the infrastructure to support tourism through hotels alone,” she said, adding that the nearest rooms are about 40 minutes away, in nearby towns. “That distance matters because when visitors cannot stay here, they don’t sleep here, and when they don’t sleep here, they don’t spend their money here; they spend it elsewhere.”

Watling went on to note a potential safety concern surrounding the lack of hospitality in the township and pointed to the recent ice storm as an example. She said that emergency hydro crews were forced to commute up to five hours daily from as far away as Kingston because local STRs were unavailable.

“This is a valuable time that could have been spent restoring power to our residents,” the business owner said. “Just a few years ago, many of those same crews were able to stay locally at short-term rentals.”

While business owners pleaded for growth, lake association leaders voiced concerns over the lack of STR limits on lakes, the apparent lack of enforcement of unlicensed rentals, and party venues.

Chris Williams, president of the Minnicock Lake Cottagers Association, told council that at least one cottage had turned over three times because residents could no longer tolerate living next to a poorly managed rental.

“Essentially, it’s called a party pit,” he said. “They sit there every weekend and have a constant stream of parties all the time. And so they’re like, ‘What is the value of this property?’ And they dump it.

“What it also means is that the zoning has become irrelevant. You’ve got businesses that are operating in residential zones,” Williams said.

He went on to urge council to move faster on enforcement, suggesting that lax enforcement means low enrollment.

“Why did I pay all this money for a licence when other people are allowed to operate without one?” Williams questioned.

Some of the granular details of the bylaw were addressed during the public meeting, such as capacity limits, shore road allowances and overall privacy concerns, with one host slamming the municipality for posting an online map of STR locations without consent.

“Big, big, big privacy issues there,” Elizabeth Oakley told council.

The public meeting lasted just over an hour, with mayor Dave Burton acknowledging that the 18-month-old program requires adjustments. “We’ve been gathering the information.

We’ve been compiling everything that has been spoken about today,” he said. “I’m very willing to look at the bylaw. We understand that it does need a bit of tweaking, and we will certainly do that.”

The mayor indicated he would request a full staff review of the public’s suggestions that were presented to council.